


Between the Lines

by shadowmaat



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Alien Character(s), F/F, Hijinks & Shenanigans, inappropriate courting gifts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-03
Updated: 2019-11-03
Packaged: 2021-01-22 11:56:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,468
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21301664
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shadowmaat/pseuds/shadowmaat
Summary: All that Librarian Keltin wants to do is enjoy her shifts in the Jedi Archives, but a certain Knight keeps showing up to cause chaos, and things go downhill from there.
Relationships: Original Jedi Archivist/Original Jedi Knight
Comments: 8
Kudos: 28





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This was _supposed_ to be a treat for the Rarepairs exchange, but SOMEONE didn't bother double-checking the list before she started writing and was all the way done and ready to post before going through and realizing that the "multiple people" who'd selected this pairing was actually ONE person: herself. So, I guess this is an accidental self-treat. It was still a fun and challenging exercise, I only regret that more people won't see it.

Senior Librarian Keltin Voras made her rounds of the Jedi Archive, enjoying the tranquility of a late and peaceful night. The next round of tests for Padawans was still months away, so she had the Archive mostly to herself, though there were a couple of nocturnally-inclined Masters conducting their own research deep within the stacks. 

The terminals hummed and the scent of antique paper and warm crystals filled the air as she passed through the rows, checking that everything was in its place. There’d been a nuisance earlier with a group of Knights several years her senior who seemed to think that the Archive doubled as a dining hall, but she’d managed to send them on their way without any mishaps and without being forced to call upon Master Nu, who had taken a rare day off to “rest.” Kel knew she was actually offworld attending an auction in hopes of adding some new volumes to their collection, but what others didn’t know couldn’t be used to make Kel’s life a nightmare.

She skimmed over the checklist, holding the besalisk-sized datapad in her primehands while her lowhands idly brushed along the shelves. With the wastebaskets emptied and the lighting adjusted, her tasks were done for the night. Now all she had to do was figure out what she wanted to read next. 

“Hello?” 

The high, light voice echoed through the stacks. Kel winced, hurrying back to the front desk.

“Is anyone here? I’d hate to think I missed- oh! There you are! Hello!”

The voice, it turned out, belonged to a young human woman. No, a miraluka, Kel amended, and found herself staring at the woman’s face.

The few miraluka she knew and the ones she’d read about all tended to wear coverings across their heads where eyes would normally be located. This one, however, had an elaborately detailed paint job of what Kel thought might be nexu eyes. The yellow coloring stood out against the woman’s dark skin, but part of it had gotten smudged, adding another layer to the unsettling effect.

“Hello,” she said, after a pause. “I’m Senior Librarian Keltin Voras. How may I help you?”

The miraluka smiled at her. “Hello, Kel! I heard you ended up in the Archives! What a good fit for you!” Before Kel could say anything, she continued. “You probably don’t remember me. I was a year behind you, but we had a few classes together. Naremi Twiss. I just made Knight last year.”

“Congratulations.” Kel searched her memory. Someone as vibrant as Naremi seemed should have stood out, but in all honesty, Kel hadn’t been much for socialization. It was yet another reason that life in the Archives suited her; Knights were expected to actually go out and talk to people.

“And you made Senior Librarian already! That’s great!” Naremi reached up to flick a hand through her hair.

Once Kel managed to drag her attention away from the false eyes, she realized Naremi’s smokey white hair was equally distracting. It hung almost to her hips and was done in a series of tiny braids that looked like- well, they looked like Padawan braids, complete with ribbons and beads woven in, though they didn’t mark any of the known achievements and milestones.

“Yes,” she said, after another pause. Kriff, she wasn’t usually this bad at conversations! “Thank you. Uh, was there something you needed?”

She tried not to feel self-conscious about her gravelly voice, which made an unpleasant contrast to Naremi’s softer lilt. She also tried not to loom over her; the miraluka had a refreshingly stocky build, but besalisks were oversized compared to most of the near-human races.

“I brought you a gift!” Naremi stepped aside, making a sweeping gesture at a hovercart containing one long case. Kel’s senses immediately went on alert.

“What is it? Do you have all the paperwork for it?” Master Nu had exacting standards when it came to accepting new material.

“It’s something I picked up on my last mission.” Naremi tugged the cart closer to Kel. “I thought it’d be a good addition for the collection here.”

“And the paperwork? Planet of origin, provenance, history, all of that?”

“Oh, that.” Naremi grimaced. “I think it’ll all be self-explanatory, but I can send you a copy of my report in the morning if you like.” She rubbed her side. “However, I need to stop off at the healer’s first. It turns out the smugglers I was tracking left a nasty little surprise for me. Though they didn’t exactly walk away unscathed, either.”

“We can’t just take in unknown materials.” Kel’s lowhands flipped the toggles on the case while her primehands pushed the lid up. “We need to know as much-” She broke off, staring at the contents of the case. “That isn’t a book.”

“Correct! It’s a… actually, I’m not sure what it is,” Naremi admitted.

“It’s a dead animal.” Kel took another look at the green spiky creature and dropped the lid. The case was, at least, one of the types with a built-in stasis field, so at least the thing wouldn’t rot. “This is a library, we don’t deal with dead animals!”

“A  _ Force-sensitive _ dead animal,” Naremi corrected. “And I know this place has a collection of rare and unusual species.” She was backing towards the door.

“Yes, but they’re already preserved and mounted!” Kel pushed the cart after Naremi. “Take this with you!”

“I’m sure there are data cubes on taxidermy here, right? You’ll figure it out.” Naremi turned and left.

“Wait!” Kel called after her. The hovercart had a wonky stabilizer and wasn’t cooperating with her efforts to chase after the escaping Knight. “You can’t leave this here! This isn’t- That’s not how the Archive works!”

Too late: Naremi was gone. Kel was so mad her gular sac inflated. She stopped, centering herself and willing the sac to deflate as she released her anger into the Force. It was okay. It would be okay. All she had to do was look up the proper protocols in Master Nu’s Archive Management Index. Master Nu had spent a lifetime formulating it and was always adding to it as new people created new situations that needed to be handled. There was an entire subsection on what to do if someone touched a Force artifact and Kel had spent several days reading through accounts of Padawans being bodyswapped, Knights being turned into animals, and Masters suddenly becoming younglings again. If her Master didn’t have a zero tolerance policy on mixing fact with fiction, she’d suspect that some of them had been made up. Maybe there was a protocol for what to do if someone brought you a dead body.

  
  


It turned out that there was an entire listing devoted to bodies and what to do with them, including making absolutely sure that the body in question was dead and not, for example, in a species-relevant form of hibernation. Kel ignored the more alarming listings and zeroed in on Body- Animal- Unknown, which is how she learned that the Temple did in fact have a Master whose hobbies included taxidermy.

She commed him, expecting to leave a message at this late hour, but got Master Addams himself. Once she explained the situation he said he’d be delighted to help and came right over. His initial guess at identification was some form of oversized albek, which was indeed a Force-sensitive predator. Kel kept both sets of hands clasped in front of her as she listened to him. It  _ was _ interesting, and she found her curiosity piqued almost against her will by the chadra-fan Master’s enthusiasm. 

Master Addams did eventually leave, and was even kind enough to help her with some of the paperwork before he did, joking that contrary to popular belief, the Jedi had harnessed the power of the forms, not the Force. Kel thanked him for his help, shut the door behind him, and sagged in exhaustion. It was nearly morning shift, and all she wanted to do was fall into bed and forget the cursed visit from Naremi Twiss. She’d already filed a complaint, so hopefully that would be the last she’d see of the weird miraluka.

Master Nu was amused by the encounter when Kel filled her in on what had happened, and shared a story of a young Padawan who had smuggled a feral pittin into the Temple with the intention of raising it. The angry feline managed to escape while the Padawan was researching how to care for it and he’d seen fit to chase it through the stacks, knocking over Masters and scattering datacubes as they went.

“He cornered it eventually, and I sent them both to the healers, since he’d accumulated a number of scratches, bites and bruises, and the pittin itself was showing signs of malnourishment.” Master Nu shook her head. 

“They both came through that debacle intact, and the Padawan spent the next few weeks setting the Archive back to rights as punishment. Remember that that’s an option for you as well,” she said. “If someone is truly causing problems, you can always assign them to help in the Archives. Let them learn a little appreciation for what we do here.”

Kel shivered; the last thing she needed was to be stuck in here with someone who thought dead animals were an appropriate gift. Master Nu reached out to pat her primearm.

“Don’t worry, Keltin, it’s only a suggestion. I’m proud of the way you handled things.”

Kel stood a little taller at the praise and returned to her duties feeling a little better about everything. Sure, Naremi had been a nuisance, but it was a one-time thing and she was ready to move on to other, better things. Such as cataloguing and indexing the new materials Master Nu had acquired on her trip.

The albek reappeared, properly preserved and mounted this time, and Kel helped her Master clear a space for it with some of the other specimens. She had to pass by it frequently on her circuits of the Archive, but it was easy enough to ignore, and within a few weeks she’d all but forgotten its presence.

Until she looked up from the circulation desk one afternoon to see a familiar miraluka heading towards her with a box.

“No.” She stood, pointing both right hands at Naremi. “Absolutely not. Whatever it is, we don’t want it!”

Naremi grinned. “Kel! I thought I recognized that soft, swirling presence!” She put the box on the desk. “How have you been?”

Kel took a step back, bumping into her chair. “We don’t need any more dead animals, thank you,” she said.

Laughing, Naremi opened the box to reveal… holocrons, datacubes, and a graying leather-bound book that smelled of mildew. “Good thing I don’t have any animals today, then, isn’t it?”

Her hair was still done in a mass of Padawan braids and she was covered with dust, dirt, and cobwebs. The nexu eyes had been replaced by something more lizard-like, judging by the fine pattern of scales drawn around the edges.

Kel pulled the box a little closer with her lowhand, just in case there were any unexpected passengers or other surprises, but nothing jumped out at her. The topmost holocron, however, did catch her attention.

“Is that… Sith?” She pulled a pair of extra large gloves from the desk drawer and put them on her primehands before reaching into the box.

“It feels like it,” Naremi said. “All stinging points and cold creeping slime.” 

Kel glanced at her, wondering how the miraluka “saw” the world and remembering that she’d described Kel as soft and swirling. Whatever that meant.

A chill was radiating up her arm as she held the dimmed holocron. She tried to drop it back in the box and it took an alarming few seconds before her fingers obeyed. 

“Where did you find these things?” She wiped her gloved hand on her robe. “Shouldn’t you be going to the Council with this?”

Naremi made a vague gesture in the air. “They know. They said to bring it here and put it into Madame Nu’s keeping, but I know I can trust you to make sure she gets it, right?”

“Of course.” Kel was beginning to wonder if she’d misjudged Naremi. However, there was still one important question. “Do you have paperwork to tell us where you got these?”

“Nope.” Leaning forward to rest her palms on the desk, Naremi tilted her head back to face Kel. “I fell through a hole into an abandoned building of some sort. There was no one around to ask about getting permission or signing forms.” She smiled.

Kel frowned. “You… fell through a hole?” 

“I followed a distress signal to a nameless planet with a long designation,” Naremi said. “As I was trying to pinpoint the source on the ground it stopped transmitting and then the ground collapsed under me.”

That sounded suspicious to Kel. She pushed the box away with her right hands and then disposed of the gloves as she listened.

“I’d be inclined to think it was some kind of trap,” Naremi said, confirming Kel’s own feelings, “except I wasn’t ambushed or attacked this time. I never sensed any lifesigns at all beyond the vegetation and some animals.”

“Huh.” She tapped a pattern against her cheek with the index finger of her left primehand, an old concentration habit from her crecheling days. “But you managed to find your way out safely?”

“Eventually.” Naremi reached up to brush a hand over her head, dislodging some dirt and bits of bramble. “I spent a long time wandering through the temple or library or whatever it was before I found a way out. I gathered up these things while I was there, because why not?” She smiled. “Besides, I figured you- or the Archives- would appreciate it.”

“Yes, well.” Kel had no idea what to do with that. “Thank you, I guess. Did you really just get back?”

“Would you like to think that?” Naremi chuckled. “Unfortunately, I had to meet with the Council first, but then I came straight here.”

Kel could feel her skin prickling. She hadn’t meant it like  _ that. _ She’d just- She-

Before she could formulate a reply, Naremi sagged.

“I’m sorry, Keltin, but I have to go.” Her stomach gurgled, a sound Kel realized she’d already heard a couple of times. “There wasn’t any food in that temple, and I hadn’t thought to restock the supplies on my ship, so…” She pushed herself upright. “Food and a shower or three and bed, probably in that order.”

“Yes, you go do that,” Kel said. “I’ll make sure Master Nu gets these just as soon as she’s done introducing Gurrcat Clan to the library.”

“Ha.” Naremi shook her head, her smile faint but there. “It wasn’t long ago that that was us, Kel,”

“And look at us now,” Kel said, grinning as she surveyed the library around them.

“Yes, indeed. An amazing sight.” Naremi sighed. “Force be with you, Keltin.” 

She turned, her steps a little more hesitant than last time as she headed for the door.

“Force’s guidance to you, too, Naremi.” Kel watched her go, feeling like she’d missed something.

The box dragged at her attention. She wanted to examine the contents in depth, but this was one procedure that had been drummed into her, so she took the box and placed it under the desk, away from any prying eyes. As much as she wanted to examine the leatherbound book, it needed to be in a sterile environment first to help preserve it. Likewise the datacrystals and holocrons would need to be in a specially shielded room in case of any leakage. Not that she thought there’d be any after all this time, but rules were rules.

She sat down and got back to work on her data entry. A few patrons came up to ask questions, but for the most part she was allowed to type in peace. Except, that is, for a growing itch on her leg. She ignored it for as long as she could before reaching down to scratch.

Her fingers encountered soft, spongy material that gave way under her nails. Confused, she glanced down to see a greenish, snakelike tendril wrapping around her leg. Screaming, she shoved the chair away from the desk and leapt to her feet, the action dragging the box closer to her. The box where the green tendril- and several of its companions- originated. Pivoting, she slammed her foot down on the one trying to climb her leg, repeating the action over and over until it was nothing but paste speared into the carpet.

“Keltin! What in the worlds are you doing?”

The sharp voice of her former Master had never been so welcome. She turned to see Master Nu standing by the corner of the desk, saber lit and ready.

“Sorry, Master! There was something in the box that Knight Twiss brought me!” She wiped frantically at her leg trying to get rid of the rest of whatever it was. The stench was appalling; like rotting flesh.

“So I see.” Master Nu wrinkled her nose before moving past Kel and levitating the box out so it hung at head height. 

More of the- vines, Kel decided, judging by the leaves- had worked their way out, twining themselves up the side of the desk, along the floor, and even diving into the bottle of water Kel had been drinking earlier.

Master Nu swiped her saber through the vines tethered to the box. “I don’t know what kind of vegetation this is,” she said, “but I don’t like it one bit.” 

She plucked the comm from her belt and a moment later there was a click over the Archive’s sound system. “Attention, everyone, the Archive is now closed and will be under quarantine in five minutes. If you haven’t left in that time, I’ll assume you want to stay with us for the decontamination process.”

There was a careful rush for the door as patrons, and the crecheling group whose tour had been interrupted, made their way out. Several of the more senior Masters bowed to Master Nu as they left.

Kel wilted under the icy blue gaze of the Chief Librarian, tucking both sets of hands close to her body as Master Nu commed for a hazmat team. 

“Now,” she said, clicking her comm off. “Why don’t you tell me exactly what happened?”

Kel told her about Naremi’s visit, the box of data crystals and books (Master Nu straightened at the mention of the Sith holocron), and how it had come to be in her possession. She then went over it again for the hazmat team, who sent someone to go bring back Naremi. A healer was commed as well, since Kel’s leg was still itching.

Master Nu, at least, was understanding, and tried to reassure her that it wasn’t her fault and that she’d done everything right, but sometimes these things still happen. All Kel could think was that “these things” seemed to happen whenever a certain miraluka was involved.

“I am never accepting anything from Naremi again,” she muttered as she was escorted to a small room off the Archives so the healer could examine her without risk of spreading any kind of contamination.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I got a bit self-indulgent at the end, but dammit, Maul Deserved Better.™

The fact that the Archive had a room dedicated to this exact sort of situation should have been reassuring- or perhaps worrying- but all Kel cared about at the moment was that  _ she _ was going to be the one stuck in it.

Two cots, a small desk with terminal access, a ‘fresher that was not built for someone of her dimensions, and a fold-out table with a drop-down bench for meals were all that decorated the room.

“I’ll make sure to include updates to accommodate you for next time, dear,” Master Nu said from the other side of the doorway’s sterility field.

“There better not be a next time!” Kel sat on one of the cots, making it creak.

“One can always hope,” Master Nu said. “However…”

“‘The Force favors the prepared mind,’” Kel quoted. 

Master Nu dipped her head. “I’ll have supper brought for you and your friend,” she said, and turned, walking away.

“My what?”

She got her answer as a cerean in Healer’s robes entered the room, leading a very reluctant Naremi.

“I understand, Healer Clera,” Naremi was saying as she scratched her arm.

“You!” Kel folded both sets of arms over her chest. “This is all your fault!”

“Oh, hi, Kel! Sorry you got dragged into this.” A smile flashed across her face before disappearing again. “I swear I passed everything through decontam. I do know how to do my job, you know.”

The last seemed to be directed at the Healer, who shooed her over to the other cot.

“I’m sure you do, Knight Twiss. Nevertheless, I’ve been tasked with getting to the bottom of this conundrum.” She turned her attention to Kel. “You must be Librarian Voras. I’m Healer Clera and neither of you are leaving this room until I’m completely satisfied that you won’t be carrying anything harmful into the rest of the Temple, so a little kindness would not be amiss.”

Kel slumped back against the wall, the cot creaking another protest. “Yes, Master.”

The next couple of hours was taken up with physical exams (with privacy screens), interrogations, and a once-over in the Force as well.

“When Sith artifacts are involved, one can never be too careful,” Clera commented.

Kel managed to cram herself into the human-sized sonic to wash off the last of the vine stench only for Clera to slather something equally smelly onto her leg to deal with the rash. She was relieved that the provided clothing fit, though, even if it was thin and scratchy.

At least Naremi suffered a similar fate, with the addition that all of her makeup was now gone. Painted-on eyes were strange, but the sudden lack of them felt… oddly private. Her hair was also a crinkled mess, braids undone and ribbons taken away for decontamination.

They were finally allowed to eat, and the Healer left to run analyses on the various samples she’d taken, though on her way out she reminded them that they would be monitored throughout the night if anything should go wrong. Or if they were to try and attempt anything they shouldn’t.

Kel had no intention of trying to leave, or of causing any kind of problems. And if Naremi tried anything, Kel would stop her before the Guardians could.

“I still think this is a bit of an overreaction,” Naremi said, fingers combing through her still-damp hair. “I’m sorry about the plants or fungus or whatever it was, but how was I supposed to know? And I did report to the Council, first. They were more concerned about the Sith holocron than warning that  _ the spores might be with me.” _

Kel rolled her eyes at the joke; a useless action, but it made her feel better.

“I just hope it didn’t get into anything in the Archive,” she said. “Some of our records are very delicate.”

Silence. She looked up to see Naremi twisting her hair around one finger.

“I really am dreadfully sorry about that, Kel,” she said. “Maybe if I could see like a normal person I would have noticed something was wrong.”

Kel’s nostrils flared. “Don’t say that! If Master Nu has a protocol for this it means it’s happened before, and it’s doubtful a miraluka was always responsible!” She fluffed her pillow into submission. Just because she was annoyed didn’t mean she wanted Naremi putting herself down.

That earned her a smile. “Thanks, Kel. I guess if we’re going to be stuck here, at least we’re stuck together, right? It’s always easier with a friend.”

Kel stared at her.  _ Friend? Were they friends? When had that happened? _ After their last encounter she’d dredged through the scattered memories of her childhood and managed to find a few that contained a small hellion of a miraluka, but while they’d interacted, she didn’t think they’d been close. 

“I guess that’s true, yes,” she said. Master Nu had often joked that “misery loves company” whenever they had to slog through a pile of reports or dust the parts of the Archives where the mouse droids weren’t allowed to go, so perhaps that was the same thing.

Naremi stifled a yawn. “I hope you’ll excuse me, but between that last mission and having to talk to the Council  _ and _ getting dragged in here like some sort of plague rat, I’m really exhausted.”

Kel flicked a lowhand in dismissal. “Sleep. I’ll be fine.”

“You’re the best, Kel.” She burrowed under the sheets and curled up, her breath leveling out in mere minutes.

Shaking her head, Kel went over to the desk, testing the chair before sitting down. It took a little extra effort, but she managed to get her large blunt fingers to work with the small interface and soon had adequate reading material to get her through the night.

For an hour or so, everything was fine. There was the occasional noise behind her as Naremi rolled over or let out a soft snore, but it was easy to tune out and concentrate on her holonovel. 

Until she heard a whimper. And then a moan. She turned to see Naremi curled tight and shaking, her distress leaking into the Force.

“Hey,” Kel said, voice soft just in case. “You okay?”

A soft whine was her only answer.

She was just getting up to take a closer look when Naremi screamed, kicking at the sheets and flailing at the air with her arms.

“Naremi!” Kel rushed over to crouch by her side, reaching a primehand out to shake her shoulder. “Hey! Wake up, you’re safe.”

“No! NO!” 

Naremi sat up, panting. She reached out, catching Kel’s primehand in both of hers.

“Kel??”

“I’m here.” Her lowhand patted Naremi’s leg. “Was it a nightmare?”

She wasn’t prepared for the hug. Naremi flug herself at her, arms wrapping around her neck as she buried her face in Kel’s shoulder and keened. Kel slowly wrapped all four arms around the shaking figure, feeling awkward and concerned.

“It was awful!” Naremi clung even tighter. “I couldn’t see! There was so much- burning, or- or trauma- screaming, everything was red and I couldn’t see!”

“It’s okay, now,” Kel said. Her hands were patting hair, which was much softer than her own bristly strands, which she kept cropped short at the side of her head. She smelled of the medicated soap Healer Clera had given them and was warmer than Kel had expected.

“I’m here,” she added, sensing that it somehow mattered that she, specifically, was the one offering comfort. It was a weird feeling, and one she didn’t want to think too much about at the moment. 

“Thanks.” Naremi gave her a final squeeze before pulling back. 

Miraluka couldn’t cry, obviously, but the skin across where eyes would be on a human-adjacent species was still darkened and reddish. She managed a brief, wavering smile before it collapsed.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I know I’m not acting like much of a Knight right now, but that was- it was intense. And I can’t even remember anything specific!”

“Nightmares happen to most people at some point,” Kel said. Realizing her hands were still on her- her temporary roommate, she dropped them, only for Naremi to catch and hold one of her primehands again. “Do you have them often?”

“No, thank the stars!” Naremi tucked her hair behind an ear. “But when I do, yeah, they’re usually pretty bad.”

“Huh. I’m sorry that happens.” Kel’s own nightmares were infrequent and were the usual stress ones about being late to a class she couldn’t reach or getting lost in the Archives while inundated with urgent requests. “Is there anything I can do?”

“Just being here is enough.” Naremi squeezed her fingers, but didn’t let go. “So how have you been? Were you really Madame Nu’s Padawan? She always intimidated me.”

Kel shifted awkwardly on her haunches; she hated talking about herself. But when Naremi shifted aside to make room for her on the bed, she found herself sitting in the offered spot.

“Master Nu isn’t so bad once you get to know her,” she said. “And as long as you follow the rules, you should be fine.”

The wrinkled nose told her that Naremi, perhaps, hadn’t been much of a rules-follower in the Archive. Somehow, it didn’t surprise her. She smiled.

“I know a lot of Initiates would’ve been upset to wind up with a Master who spends so much time here in the Temple, but I was never really the adventurous type.” She flicked her fingers in dismissal. A lot of her yearmates had expressed their “condolences” that she’d gotten “stuck” with Master Nu, but she’d been relieved. She already loved the Archives, and while she would have been content to go to the Education Corps, staying right where she was suited her just fine.

“You preserve knowledge.” Naremi stifled a yawn. “Sorry. That’s just as important as what the rest of us do. Tell me more! Do you have a favorite book?”

Kel eyed her. “You need to be distracted, don’t you?”

“Maybe.” She grinned. “Yeah, a little. Is that okay?”

“Sure. Let me think.” She shifted to make herself more comfortable and then started telling Naremi about some of her more unusual finds in the Archive. From there she launched into the various protocols Master Nu had drawn up and why some of them had been enacted. 

Naremi had been fascinated at first, but her replies and questions grew slower and more sporadic. When Kel felt a soft weight on her shoulder, she wasn’t surprised to look and see Naremi’s head resting there. She didn’t need to see closed eyes to know the miralukan Knight was asleep, but it did leave her in a predicament about what to do. She was getting pretty tired, herself, but if she moved it might disturb Naremi.

She closed her eyes, intending to meditate on the question, but found herself startling awake several hours later when there was a knock on the door.

“Coming!” Naremi all but bounced off the bed while Kel was still trying to organize her thoughts.

“Good news,” Healer Clera said, entering the room. “You’re both clear of any kind of infection.” She smiled. “Your little spore-based friend was a variety of  _ hakeka maiaka _ , a sort of fast-growing fungal vine. Causes a rash, but otherwise harmless.”

“And the Archives?” Naremi asked before Kel could.

“The Archives are fine,” Clera said. “A generic fumigant worked to nullify the spores and they’ll be back open again later this morning.”

“Great! See, Kel? It all worked out!”

Kel managed not to jump as Naremi hugged her.

“I- uh, that’s good,” she said, wishing she could at least have some caf first. “But how did it grow so fast? And not til it was in the Library. And the Sith artifact…”

Healer Clera chuckled. “Your former Master worked out those answers. I’m sure she’ll fill you in, but let’s just say it was a combination of bad luck, environmental conditions, and some stowaway spores coming out of dormancy at the wrong time.” 

She stepped aside, gesturing at the door. “Madame Nu can tell you more about the holocron and other items if you wish, but I’m sure you’re both ready to get out of confinement, yes?”

“Breakfast!” Naremi grinned.

“Caf would be nice,” Kel said. “Thank you, Healer Clera.” She bowed to the cerean before following Naremi out of the room.

“Yes! Thanks!” Naremi waved.

“You’re both very welcome, but do try to avoid having this happen again,” Clera said, smiling.

“Yes.” Kel stretched all four arms and tried to work the crick out of her neck.

“Care to join me for a celebratory meal?” 

The question surprised her, though it probably shouldn’t have. “Oh, um, sure?” 

The caf in the dining halls wasn’t as strong as what she kept in her room, but she could always have more later. She walked beside Naremi, letting her do most of the talking while she concentrated on keeping her eyes open.

“Not much of a morning person, huh?” Naremi nudged her with an elbow.

Kel looked at her, trying to think of a clever response. “No,” she said.

Naremi laughed, steering her through the doors to the dining hall. “Come on, let’s get you some tea and breakfast.”

“Caf,” Kel corrected. “Caf, please.”

“A woman after my own heart,” she said. “Caf it is, then.”

Conversation did happen. And breakfast. Kel was hazy on the specifics afterward, but knew that Naremi was very kind to her and made sure her mug stayed full until they were ready to leave. At one point Kel caught herself trying to reach out to pet all that hair, but managed to shift it into reaching for her mug instead. Naremi didn’t seem to notice, although she was brushing her hair out of her face a lot. Kel was starting to understand why she wore it in braids.

“This was nice,” Naremi said as they were leaving. “We’ll have to try it again sometime, yeah? Maybe later in the day.”

“Yeah,” Kel said. “That would be nice.”

And it would, she realized. For all the headaches Naremi had caused her, she seemed like a nice person. A little too energetic first thing in the morning, maybe, but still nice. And she hadn’t tried to force Kel to be as cheerful as she was, which was a nice change from some of her friends.

The rest of the day remained uneventful. Kel went to the Archives after breakfast and Master Nu filled her in on everything that had happened, including the fact that whatever malevolence might have been in the holocron had apparently been nullified by the same fungus that had attached itself to Kel. It was the only “victim” in the Archives and was not considered a great loss.

In fact, Master Nu almost seemed pleased with the outcome, and gave Kel the day off to recuperate.

“It was very kind of you to take care of your friend last night,” she said, “and I’m glad to see that she seems to be taking care of you, as well, even if she is encouraging your caf habit.”

Kel thought about correcting her, but decided that maybe Naremi did count as a friend after all. She went back to her room and slept for most of the day, and spent a leisurely, stress-free night catching up on some of her reading.

  
  


Not quite a week passed before she glanced up from the main circulation desk to see Naremi striding towards her, carrying something in her arms. She stifled an automatic urge to say “no,” when she realized that it was a youngling in her arms. Small, red-and-black skinned, and with horns on his head that indicated zabrak heritage. He was clinging to Naremi’s robes and absolutely saucer-eyed as they approached.

“We can’t archive younglings,” Kel told her, before turning her attention to the too-small zabrak. “Hello, little one. My name’s Kel, what’s yours?”

He stared at her.

“This is Maul,” Naremi said, her voice gentler than Kel had ever heard it. “My ship crashed on the planet where he was being held prisoner and I-”

_ “Prisoner?!” _ Kel sat straight up in her chair.

Maul flinched, baring his teeth at her.

“Shh, it’s okay.” Naremi patted Maul’s back, though it didn’t seem to soothe him. “Prisoner or slave or whatever, yeah. Getting into the fortress to ask for help was a nightmare, and the droid staff in charge were downright hostile, so I snooped around while they were reluctantly making repairs to get rid of me and I found this little guy.”

Kel could feel the fear and suspicion rolling off the toddler in waves; whatever else he was, he was Force sensitive.

“The whole place was just steeped in… it was like trying to see through molasses, and my senses were burning, so I grabbed him and ran. Well,” she hesitated. “It was a bit more complicated than that, but here we are!” 

Maul was still glaring at Kel. He hadn’t said a word the whole time.  _ Who names their kid Maul, _ she wondered. And wasn’t sure she wanted to know the answer. Her lowhand opened the desk drawer and pulled out one of the lollipops they kept on hand for well-behaved younglings. He glared at that, too, when she offered it to him.

“Thank you,” Naremi said, taking the treat for him. “We’ve already been to the Healer’s for a checkup, and I’m supposed to take him straight to the creche, but I thought maybe we could take him to dinner, first?”

“Me? I mean, us?” She stared at them, unsure how to feel.

Naremi’s shoulders slumped. “Oh, right, you’re probably still working. If you can’t take a break, or don’t want to, I underst-”

“No,” Kel interrupted, standing up. “No, I think… I think now is the perfect time for a break.”

A few months ago she would have been appalled at herself for shirking her duties, but now that Naremi had dropped into her life like a chaos ball, well. Here was a Jedi Knight whose missions included foiling smugglers, answering distress calls, and now rescuing small children from captivity, but for all those accomplishments, she still needed help. Help that Kel could not only provide, but now  _ wanted _ to provide.

“Really?” Naremi smiled. Her hair was done up in its tidy braids again, and her eyepaints this time appeared to be avian, judging by the feathering around the edges.

“I’ll comm Master Nu and let her know,” she said. “After all, someone needs to keep you from finding more trouble on the way to the dining hall.

Naremi laughed. “Who, me?”

Kel texted Master Nu, and the only reply she got back was “Finally.” Whatever that meant.

Naremi held out her hand. “Shall we treat our future Padawan to the biggest meal of his life?”

“I’m not sure you understand how Padawanship works.” Kel clasped the proffered hand, using a primehand to wave at the still-suspicious Maul.

“Oh really? Then why don’t you explain it to me, O Wise and Wonderful Keeper of Knowledge.”

Skin prickling, Kel launched into an explanation of a subject they both already knew, Naremi’s hand warm in her own. And if they garnered a few odd looks on their way to the dining halls, what of it? She was happy, Naremi was happy, and if Maul wasn’t happy yet, there was plenty of time for them to work on that. Together.


End file.
